Seal.



No. 836,292. PA'IENTED NOV.'20, 1906.

G. L. WOOD.

SEAL. APPLICATION FILED no.1. 1905.

THE NORRIS PETERS co., wAsl-lmqmu, D. c.

' UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HALF TO FRANK B. LOTHROP,

OF SOUTH ACTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

SEAL.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 20, 1906.

Application filed December 1, 1905. Serial No. 289,729.

To all whom it flea/y concern:

Be it known that 1, CHARLES L. WOOD, a citizen of the United States, residing in Win throp, in the county of Sufiolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement in Seals, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, like characters on the drawings representing like parts.

This invention relates to a seal for use on frelght-cars, mall-pouches, original packages, i

and other receptacles whose contents are to be transported intact, and has for its object to provide a simple, seal which can be quickly and without the use of instruments. For this purpose a closed metallic case is employed which contains within it one or more pockets or receptacles for the reception of the normally free end of a wire bail or shackle, which free end is adapted to be passed into said pocket through a channel or guideway in the cover for said case. The case further contains a disk or plate having an opening which cooperates with said guideway or channel and a slot extended from said opening for a purpose, as will be described. These and other features of this invention will be pointed out in the claims at the end of this specification.

Figure 1 is a plan view of a seal embodying this invention; Fig. 2-, an under side view of the seal shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 3, a plan view of the seal shown in Fig. 1 with the cap or cover removed; Fig. 4, a plan view of the seal shown in Fig. 3 with the slotted plate or disk shown therein removed; Fig. 5, a section on an enlarged scale taken on the line 5 5 Fig. 1; Fig 6, a plan view of a modified form of seal; Fig. 7, a plan view of the seal shown in Fig. 6 with the cap or cover removed; Fig. 8, a plan view of the seal shown in Fig. 7 with the slotted plate or disk shown therein removed Referring to the drawings, a represents a metal case preferably circular in shape and within which is located means, as will be described, for retaining one or both ends of a metal bail or shackle b. The case a is made of sheet metal, preferably tin, and may be provided in its bottom with a depression or pocket 0, into which is placed one end of the wire bail or shackle b, the ends of which may be bent to form heads cf at the opposite ends of said bail. The head 6 may be soldered or inexpensive, and efficient 1 easily applied 1 1 otherwise ermanently secured to the case a E in the poo act or cavity 0, so as to permanently attach one end of the bail to the said case. The case a may and preferably will contain within it a disk or circular plate g, of metal, fiber, or other suitable material, said i disk being provided with a plurality of openings, (shown in Fig. 4 as two in number and marked it i,) said openings being of sufficient size to receive the head f on the wire bail b. The disk or plate g has cooperating with it a substantially thin disk ably of tin, which rests on the plate or disk g and is provided with an opening or hole m of substantially the size of the hole h in the disk g and registers therewith. The disk is l is provided with a slot n, which extends from the hole m and is made of sufficient length to l extend across the opening i in the disk gfthe said slot being of suflicient width to receive the wire bail and permit the latter to be moved longitudinally in said slot. The l metal disk is may also be provided with narl row slits p on opposite sides of the slot n, as shown in Fig. 3, to form spring-fingers 10 on l opposite sides of the slot .n. The metal disk is has cooperating with it a disk or plate 12, which forms a cover for said case and is pro- 2 vided with a struck-up or raised portion 13 i which extends to near the edge of the disk and forms a guideway or channel in the cover for the passage of the free end of the bail into l said case. The inner end of the guideway or channel I 13 is located above the opening at in the disk l, 7c, and the upper wall of said guideway is downwardly inclined at its inner end, as at 1 16, (see Fig. 5,) so as to form a deflector by means of which the free end of the bail when inserted into the guideway is caused to pass down into the openings in the disks g is, after which the free end of the bail is drawn outward toward the circumference of thecase, the bail itself passing into the slot 1 in the l disk 7c and the head f on the free end thereof passing under the spring-fingers 10 and between the disks 70 9 until the said head has been brought above the opening i in the disk g, into which opening it is forced by the l spring action of the disk k, and from which 1 opening the free end of the .bail cannot be removed either by lifting on the portion of the bail outside of the case or'by forcing or push l ing the bail into the case. It will thus be or plate k, preferseen that the bail is firmly secured within the case and cannot be removed therefrom without destroying the case. The cover may be firmly secured to the case by folding over the flange or rim of the latter or in any other suitable manner.

It may be preferred to permanently fasten one end of the bail to the case after the man ner represented in Figs. 1 to 5; but itis not desired to limit the invention in this respect, as both ends of the bail may be snapped into place in the case, as represented in Figsyo to 8, wherein the disk 9 is shown as provided with two locking pockets or openings i. The disk is providedwith two'slots n for the passage of the ends of the bail, and the cap 12 is provided with two guideways 13, which terminate in the incline or deflector 16, located over the openings m h in the disks 70 g.

It may be preferred to employ the locking pockets or pocket i in the disk 9; but it is not desired to limit the invention in this respect, as the deflector 16, cooperating with the hole m in the disk is, would prevent disengagement or withdrawal of the free end or ends of the bail,for by inspection of Fig. 5 it will be seen that if the free end of the bail rested upon the disk 9 and below the disk k the said end of the bail might be forced or pushed back until it passed between the said disks, but that it would strike the deflector or inclined portion of the guideway 13 before thebail could pass out of the slot n and clear the disk lc. Consequently the free end of the bail could not be brought above the disk, which would be necessary in order to withdraw the bail from the case.

In operation with the snap-seal (shown in Figs. 1 to 5, inclusive) the free end of the bail is inserted into the guideway until its head has passed into the opening m in the disk 7c, after which the bail is drawn back, and on this return movement the head passes under the disk is until it comes into line with the pocket or opening i, into which it is forced by the spring action of the disk 76, as represented in Fig. 5, and from which the said head cannot be disengaged by movement of the portion of the bail outside of the case. The heads on the free end or ends of the bail may the left open, as herein represented, or they may be filled with lead or other material.

. I claim 1. In a seal of the character described, in combination, a case, a disk or plate located in said case and provided with a plurality of openings, a second plate or disk provided with an opening cooperating with an opening in the first-mentioned disk and having a slot opening in the other disk,

extended over a second opening in said firstmentioned disk, a cover for said case provided with a guideway or channel cooperating with the openings in said disks, and a bail having a free end inserted into said case and provided with a head and extended through the said slot in one disk and into an substantially as described.

2. In a seal of the character described, in combination, a case, a disk or plate within said case having an opening for the passage of the free end of a bail and'provided with a slot narrower than said opening and extended therefrom, means to support said disk above the bottom of said case, and a cover for said case having a guideway through which the bail is inserted into the case and provided with a deflector in line with said guideway and above and in line with the opening in said disk to deflect the free end of said bail down into said opening and below said disk, the slot extended from the opening in the disk permitting the free end of the bail to be moved out of line with the opening in said disk, substantially as described.

3. In a seal of the character described, in combination, a case provided with a cavity or receptacle in its bottom for the reception of one end of a bail, a disk or plate located in said case and having a plurality of openings, a second disk or plate within said case having an opening cooperating with an opening in the first-mentioned disk and having a slot extended over a second opening in the firstmentioned disk, and a cover for said case having a guideway provided with an inclined inner end which cooperates with the hole in the slotted disk, substantially as described.

4. In a seal of the character described, in combination, a case, a cover secured thereto and provided with a guideway through which the end of a bail is inserted into said case, a disk or plate within said case having an opening cooperating with thesaid'guideway and a slot extended from said opening, and a bail inserted in said guideway and through the slot in said disk, said bail having a head which engages the under side of the disk in the operative position of said bail, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence'of two subscribing witnesses.

CHARLES L. WOOD.

ioc 

